Entering the annual Beach Rugby tournament at Shonan Beach Park in Hiratsuka, a bunch of very game Tokyo Crusaders headed down early on Sunday morning – post typhoon – to play in this fun annual summer fixture.

A mix of touch rugby, american football, and mixed-teams 2 hand grope the Cru have been very consistent throughout the years in this event. For 12 years running we’ve failed to reach the second round! We haven’t won a game for 3 years, and also scored 0 tries in that time as well!

With the bar set low Ev, Lawrence, Lucas, Keith, Nabin and Joel were out to keep up to those standards, but came upon a stumbling block in the first fixture when the opposition failed to turn up. This forfeit meant the Cru gained a walkover – a Cru Beach Rugby Victory! Miracles are possible. In the second game, a win for the Cru would mean progression through to the knockout rounds for the very first time.

Lucas did his best to make sure that didn’t happen, while practising for the game somehow managed to almost knock himself out on a metal pole, in the middle of a beach! That run was about the closest the Cru would come to a try all day though, as we were thoroughly beaten in the second game – not helped by Ev on the sideline who called “last touch” on the 3rd tackle, then 4th tackle, then 5th tackle each time, allowing a flat footed defence to be easily shredded. You’d think the only guy to have played this game for the last 10 years would actually know the rules! And….you’d be wrong.

The day was done by 10:30 in the morning, and that meant it was beer o’clock, not that it was stopping anyone – with most of the teams already getting stuck into the Asahi silver bullets or chu-hai’s for breakfast.

A fun, but short day was had by all – and everyone made the same commitment we’ve made each and every year. Now we know the rules and actually know how to play this stupid game, let’s get together and have a practise a few weeks before hand and maybe try and win!

No doubt that will never happen of course, and we’ll arrive hungover, clueless and tryless before getting on the beers before lunch!

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RECENT RESULTS

UPCOMING EVENTS

Feb. 17th – Friendly Match
vs Tentoumushi

Feb. 22nd – Crusaders Ski Trip
at Snowy Slopes of Dreams

Mar. 31st – Friendly Match
vs TBD

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TOKYO CRUSADERS

Established in 1990, the Tokyo Crusaders are a friendly but keen international rugby club. Devoted both to the game and its social side, the 'Cru' welcome new players of all sizes and abilities. The Tokyo Crusaders accept players from all over Kanto, Japan. We are the 2016 Shuto League champions, and in the 1st Division of the Tokyo Cup!